Mass quantities

How long will it take my family to eat this vat of curry chicken?

Talented and Gifted Program

The other day I went to the orientation for Prince George's County Program for Talented and Gifted (TAG) children. I learned a few things. Kids with high test scores and recommendations from their teachers can attend 1 of 9 elementary schools in the county where the entire school is dedicated to TAG students. The teachers are trained in cultivating the minds and talents of high performers and kids can get more customized lessons based on their ability. We will need to enter the lottery program to get into one of these TAG Center schools but the chances are best for entering 2nd graders.

However, this process made me think.

1) Kids are tested and tracked for the TAG program based on a standardized test score in 1st grade. Wow! This underscores the need to be actively engaged with your kids right away.

2) Once you are in the TAG program, you are TAG for life and therefore if you miss the entry at 2nd grade it is nearly impossible to ever gain admittance into the TAG program.

3) Charter schools do not have to follow the same rules about the TAG program and therefore may or may not offer the same kind of advanced curriculum. Maybe charter schools are not all that they are cracked up to be.

4) As we think about the growing stratification in our societies regarding wealth and inequality, we often look to differences in education to "explain" certain differences. It would seem to me that segregating the best students from their peers would work best for those high performing students, but I wonder about the students left behind.

I certainly hope the formula we used on Cole works for Reed. And I also hope Cole wins the lottery to get into the TAG Center school.

More to come.

Key Milestone - Cole Recognizes NPR

I subject Cole and Reed to hours upon hours of news radio. I like NPR, so they must like NPR. Plus I don't like the lyrics of much of today's music and I am sick of listening to Michael Jackson. Therefore, every car trip they are subjected to NPR. And tonight Cole said, "so, there are too many wolves in Wyoming". Yes, NPR was doing a story about the overpopulation of wolves in the upper Northwest of the United States.

I was so proud. Cole and his dad are proud nerds!

Twin Update

This week we had another ultrasound and the amniocentesis. Both boys are perfect! They did a through scan of all of their anatomy an everything looked great and the preliminary results of the amnio show both babies are genetically normal.

Here is Baby A looking like he's picking his nose and then giving us a high five.




Here's Baby B waving and showing us his little piggies.

Kids & Headgear

Chef Reed helping Daddy make porkchops.

Cole breaking in the new headband at his basketball game.